Nail pulling machine



J. H. DoBBlN, JR 2,704,198

NAIL PULLING MACHINE 1 2 sheets-sheet 1 March l5, 1955 Filed Deo. 26. 1950 4March l5, 1955 J. H. DoBBlN, JR 2,704,198

NAIL PULLING MACHINE Filed Dec. 26, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. JAY H. DUBBI/kl JE.

United States Patent O NAIL PULLING MACHINE Jay H. Dobbin, Jr., San Francisco, Calif. Application December 26, 1950, Serial No. 202,795

1 Claim. (Cl. 254-18) This invention relates to a nail pulling machine and has for its principal object the provision of a simple, automatic machine for removing the nails from the sides and bottoms of containers after said sides and bottoms have been removed from the end walls.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a simple and economically made nail pulling machine adapted to force the heads of nails carried by the walls of a wooden box away from such walls, after the box walls are disassembled, and to thereafter engage said heads and to pull the nails from said walls.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description and attached drawings.

Fig. 1 is a semi-schematic side elevational view of the apparatus for removing the nails from the sides and bottoms of containers, taken along line 1-1 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the nail removing apparatus of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a transverse, vertical cross-sectional view of the nailzremoving apparatus as taken along lines 3-3 o Fig.

In detail a box disassembling device generally indicated at 1 in Fig. 1 may be of any suitable type for removing the side walls 33 (one being indicated in dash lines in Fig. 1) from a box with the nails 73 carried by said walls with their heads against a side of each wall.

After the bottom wall and sidewalls have been removed from the container, the nails which are still projecting from said walls are removed by the apparatus shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. As best seen in Figs. 1, 2, this nail pulling apparatus comprises an elongated table 125 on which the walls may be positioned for movement therealong. The table 125 may be conveniently positiolgd allongside the disassembling apparatus as shown 1n 1g.

At one end of the table 125 is a pair of sprocket wheels 126, 127 supported on a shaft 128 which may be rotatably supported at its ends in bearings 129, 130. These sprocket wheels 126, 127 carry chains 131, 132 respectively which extend longitudinally of the table 125, the latter being provided with slots 133, 134 for receiving said chains.

Intermediate the ends of the table 125 are another pair of sprocket wheels 135, 136 which are secured to drive shaft 137 supported on bearings 138, 139. Drive shaft 137 is driven by chain 140 from a reducer 141 which in turn is powered by electric motor 142. The chains 131, 132 are provided at equally spaced points along their lengths with outwardly projecting lugs 145, which are adapted to engage one of the longitudinally extending edges of the walls 33. The Walls 33 are manually positioned on the table 125 with their nails 73 projecting upwardly (Fig. l) and With one edge of the walls 33 against the upstanding leg of an angle 146 (Figs. 2, 3) which is positioned along the longitudinally extending margin 151 of the table 125 which is nearer the chain 131.

It will be apparent that the walls 33 will be moved along the length of table 125 by the upstanding lugs 145 of the chains 131, 132. For the purpose of urging the walls 33 against angle 146 a guide 147 may be provided for engaging the edge of the wall 33 which is opposite the edge in engagement with the marginal angle 146. This guide 147 is supported by arms 148 from rods 149 positioned over the table 125 and extending inwardly from the longitudinally extending marginal angle 150 of the table 125 which is opposite the edge 151 against 2,704,198 Patented Mar. 15, 1955 'ice which the walls 33 are positioned. These rods 149 are rigidly secured at their outer ends to the upper ends of vertically extending angles 152 which are rigidly secured at their lower ends to the angles 150. The arms 148 which support the guides 147 are yieldably urged inwardly of the table by compression springs 154 which extend between said arms and collars 155, the latter being adjustable along the length of the rod 149 to suit the length of the wall or slat being run.

Over the table 125 are a pair of hold-down guides 157 which are adapted to engage the tops of the walls 33 just before they leave the upper runs of the chains 131, 132 adjacent the driving sprockets 135, 136. These guides are supported from transversely extending supports 158 positioned over the table 125 and secured at their ends to the marginal angles 146, 150.

After the walls 33 have passed the first support 158, a vertically reciprocable, horizontally disposed nail pusher 160 is adapted to move downwardly against the pointed ends of the upwardly extending nails 73 for pushing said nails downwardly through the walls (Fig. l).

The nail pusher comprises a generally at plate having a roughened lower surface 161 (Fig. 3) to prevent slipping of the nail point thereon and is provided with a recess 162 (Fig. 3) throughout that portion of the plate which does not engage the nails of any conventional sized container wall. Thus a downwardly projecting strip 163 extending longitudinally of the table is formed to engage the nails 73 which are along the marginal portion of the wall adjacent the angle 146 and a relatively wider portion 164 (Fig. 3) is formed along the opposite edge of the pusher plate to engage the nails 73 along the opposite marginal portion of the wall. The portion 164 is large enough to push the nails of any of the conventional containers. In the drawings, the sidewalls 33 of the shortest conventional wooden containers are shown and for larger sizes the table 125 is formed with a plurality of longitudinally extending slots 165 for receiving the nails of dierent sized containers. The pusher plate 160 is, of course, large enough to engage the nails of all conventional sidewalls. The recess 162 in the lower side of the pusher plate receives the hold down guides 157, thus permitting the walls to be held firmly in place during operation of the pusher 160.

The pusher plate 160 reciprocates vertically in parallel stationary guides 170, two pairs of which may be positioned adjacent the opposite ends of the plate. Connecting rods 171 are pivotally connected at their upper ends to pins 172 rigid with the plate 160 and at their lower ends to wheels 173 which are rigidly secured to opposite ends of a drive shaft 174 which is rotatably supported in bearings 175. This shaft 174 is provided with a sprocket wheel 176 which is driven by a chain 177 (Fig. l) from the drive shaft 137 hereinbefore described. lt will be noted that the lugs 145 are spaced apart a suicient distance to accommodate walls of dilerent width and in most cases a substantial space will be left between each lug 145 and the next succeeding wall 33 (Figs. 1, 2). These lugs 145 will drive the walls until they start vdownwardly around the drive sprockets 135, 136 (Fig. l) at which time the wall which has been pushed by the lugs 145 will be directly under the nail pusher 160. By this arrangement all of the preceding walls on the table 125 are pushed along the table by the lugs 145.

After the walls 33 have passed the nail pusher 160 with their nails projecting downwardly, the heads of said nails are adapted to be engaged by a pair of elongated elements 180. These elements 180 extend longitudinally of the table 125, and are spaced apart a distance less than the diameter of a nail head (Fig. 3) and are positioned so as to receive said nails within the space 181 between them. These elements 180 are positioned at a slight angle to the table 125 so that they diverge slightly downwardly from said table in the direction of travel of the walls (Fig. l) for progressively withdrawing the nails 73 as the walls move along the table 125 to the right as indicated in Figs. 1, 2.

For supporting the elements 180, I provide tubular spacers 182 of varying length adapted to receive bolts 183 longitudinally therethrough. The underside of the table 125 may be provided with tapped holes between the slots 165 for threadedly receiving said bolts 183 so as to permit positioning of the elements 180 to suit the size of wall to be run. In the event that some nails are slantingly disposed with respect to the sidewalls 33 after they have been pushed through the latter by the pusher 160, the ends of the elements 180 closest to the oncoming nails are preferably biased as at 184 (Fig. 3) for swinging the nails 73 into the spaces 181 between the elements 180.

The nails 73 which drop downwardly by gravity after being released from the walls 33 may be received in a trough 187 and carried 0E to any convenient receptacle and the walls 33 may be dropped off the discharge end 188 of the table by gravity or stacked by any convenient method.

It will be apparent that the operation of the above described nail puller is extremely effective, and the same may be operated at an extremely high rate of speed automatically except for loading of the walls on the table by the operator.

The above detailed description should not be construed as limiting the invention to the exact structure disclosed as it is obvious that changes in design may be carried out without affecting the scope of the invention dened by the following claim.

I claim:

Apparatus for removing headed nails from rectangular box walls in which the said nails are in spaced parallel rows that are parallel with two of the opposite edges of said walls and in which the heads of said nails are against one and the same side of each wall and in which the pointed end portions of said nails project from the opposite side of each wall, comprising; a conveyor for supporting said walls in a row with said rows of nails in longitudinal alignment and with their pointed sides projecting upwardly for movement of said walls in a direction parallel with said rows, means for so moving said walls, means engaging said walls for holding them with said rows in alignment during said movement, a pusher at a point in said path positioned over the pointed ends of the nails of said rows and supported for movement longitudinally of the nails of said rows toward said walls and against said pointed ends for pushing the nails of said rows through said walls at said point, means for so moving said nail pusher upon each wall being moved to a position below said nail pusher; means below said conveyor positioned to engage the heads of said nails upon the said nails being pushed by said nail pusher, said means being elongated spaced members extending longitudinally of said rows providing a slot between each pair thereof through which the nails of each row are adapted to pass at points along said nails adjacent to said heads, said slots being narrower than said heads whereby the said heads will engage said members adjacent each slot and the direction of incline of said members being away from said path in said direction of travel whereby movement of said walls past said nail pusher and along said path will result in the nails of said rows being progressively pulled from said walls, said conveyor including a power driven section extending to said nail pusher and a stationary section extending below and past said nail pusher, means on said power driven means for positioning said walls spaced from each other in the direction of said path and for engaging each wall for forceably moving said walls in succession and at intermittent periods to a position below said nail pusher and for intermittently moving said walls along said stationary section, said stationary section being below said nail pusher.

References Cited in the le of this patent 

